Method for securely distributing meeting data from interactive whiteboard projector

ABSTRACT

Distributing meeting data from an interactive whiteboard projector to at least one computer of a meeting member, comprises: in the interactive whiteboard projector, using a processor to save meeting data, generate a password, display a screen with a URL of the projector and the password and use a web server to transfer the meeting data from the interactive whiteboard projector to the at least one computer.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is related to commonly owned U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/332,751, filed Dec. 21, 2011, which is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to interactive whiteboardprojectors (IWPs) and pertains to sharing meeting content that has beenstored on the IWP. More specifically, the present invention relates todistributing the IWP stored content to meeting participants in a securemanner.

BACKGROUND

In the past, a projector and an interactive whiteboard were used tocreate an interactive and collaborative meeting environment. Now, asingle product, known as an interactive whiteboard projector (IWP) canmake almost any wall, or even a tabletop, interactive. One suchcommercial product is the Epson BrightLink 455Wi interactive whiteboardprojector.

Interactive whiteboard projectors can turn any surface into acollaborative interactive workspace. They function like an interactivewhiteboard without a dedicated board—almost any surface can be utilized.An electronic whiteboard pen can be used as a mouse to draw, write andclick. It can be used to draw and annotate on the visuals beingpresented.

The Epson BrightLink 455Wi projector plus pen combination integratesinteractive functionality in one machine without the constraints orexpense of a conventional interactive whiteboard and is compatible withWindows® Ink Tools to easily add annotations and more. Because it is anultra-short throw distance projector, it can be mounted on any wall orceiling to project a whiteboard surface image from a very shortdistance, thus eliminating or reducing shadowing of the personinteracting with the whiteboard surface. Individuals interact with thewhiteboard surface using an infrared pen, and the system software isplatform independent so that the user can work with virtually any Web2.0 application, digital media file, or eTextbook. The interactivesoftware allows the user to draw on the screen, highlight areas, saveannotations, and toggle between pen and mouse modes.

In reference to the present invention, the term “meeting” will be usedin a general sense. A meeting could be, for example, in a corporatesetting with various presenters showing Powerpoint slides, PDF files,Word documents, etc., or a classroom setting with a teacher presenting alesson and the students interacting with the whiteboard screen to offersolutions to problems, or any other various presentation setting wherevideos, photos, or slides are shown.

In a typical corporate meeting, for example, users may generate manypages of drawing data that are cached on the interactive whiteboardprojector (IWP). Additional data such as images, Powerpoint slides, PDFfiles, videos, Word documents, etc. may be uploaded by users to the IWPto be displayed or annotated. Once the meeting concludes, meetingparticipants need an easy, secure method for accessing data stored onIWP.

Various methods have been proposed for delivering meeting information toparticipants. Email is one example. The IWP can be configured over anetwork to have access to an enterprise email server. In this example,meeting participants email addresses are entered into the IWP and theIWP is programmed to send all meeting content to the list of emailaddresses through the enterprise email server. However, this mode ofdelivery has certain limitations. It requires IT staff to configure theprojector and email server to allow access. The IWP must have access toa global email address list and each meeting participant's email addressmust be added to the meeting. For security, email contents must beencrypted and passwords provide through another channel such as a phonemessage. Users cannot interactively select specific content and ignoreothers, and the limited capacity of the typical email server may causelarge attachments to be rejected.

Another possible method is the use of a USB key (a data storage devicethat includes flash memory with an integrated Universal Serial Bus (USB)interface). In this instance, the meeting leader places a USB key in theIWP and saves the meeting content to the key. A USB key is thenphysically given to each meeting participant to copy to their personalcomputers. However, this is a slow and cumbersome process, and somemeeting participants may not have a laptop in the conference room, ortheir device, e.g. iPad® or smart phone, may not have a USB port. Manycompanies do not allow USB keys to be used within the corporationbecause of security concerns. Also, since the meeting content is just alist of files, users may have difficulty finding the specific items thatthey are most interested in saving.

Another solution for distributing the meeting content is to save it to alocal file server. If the IWP has access to an enterprise file server,once the meeting is over, the meeting contents are saved to a directoryon the file server. However, this requires the IT staff to configure theIWP and file server to allow access. For highest security, meetingcontent must be encrypted. This requires a password to be distributed.Many meetings involve members that are not in a predefined enterprisesecurity group. This requires meeting files on an enterprise file serverto be accessible to all, which is unacceptable if confidential items arediscussed in the meeting. Further, the IWP firmware must have thecapability of writing and reading data across a network using networkdisk protocols including a security model.

Lastly, a possible solution is to save to the meeting contents to thecloud (a web-based service). If the IWP has access to a service on thecloud such as Google Docs, once the meeting is over, the meetingcontents are converted and uploaded to the cloud service. This solutionalso has many limitations. It requires the IT staff to configure the IWPand cloud service to allow access. The IWP would have to be programmedto understand network protocols and document formats supported by manydifferent service providers. Many IT departments prohibit the use ofsuch services due to security and internal document policies. Also, manyservices do not have the concept of groups so all meeting participantswould need to have an account at the service provider, such as Google,in addition to their corporate email account.

Therefore, it would be desirable to have a way of distributing meetingcontent from the interactive whiteboard projector to meetingparticipants that would be secure but without the disadvantages of othersolutions proposed above.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention provides an interactive whiteboard projector, amethod, and computer-readable media for distributing meeting data froman interactive whiteboard projector to at least one computer of ameeting member. More specifically, a processor in the interactivewhiteboard projector saves meeting data, generates a password, causesdisplay of a screen with a URL of the projector and the password, anduses a web server to transfer the meeting data from the interactivewhiteboard projector to the at least one computer.

In a preferred embodiment, a processor in the at least one computeraccess the URL of the projector using a web browser and the password,and downloads the meeting data from the interactive whiteboardprojector.

In a further embodiment, the processor in the at least one computerselects individual whiteboard files of meeting data for downloading fromthe interactive whiteboard projector.

In another embodiment, the meeting data saved on the interactivewhiteboard projector is deleted once all meeting data has beendownloaded.

In an embodiment, encrypted meeting data is transferred from theinteractive whiteboard projector to the at least one computer across anetwork using an https protocol.

In yet another embodiment, the password is a time-expiration password,and preferably, the meeting data saved on the interactive whiteboardprojector is deleted once the time-expiration password has expired.

In a further embodiment, a QR Code (Quick Response Code) is displayed onthe screen with the URL embedded.

Other objects and attainments together with a fuller understanding ofthe invention will become apparent and appreciated by referring to thefollowing description and claims taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings wherein like reference symbols refer to like parts:

FIG. 1 shows a general view of an interactive whiteboard projector (IWP)connected to one or more computers through a network;

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram view with more detail of aprojector and computer:

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of an interactive whiteboard meeting;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the general steps of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 5 shows an example of a projector web page that is accessed bymeeting members to download meeting data.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a general view of an interactive whiteboard projector (IWP)10 connected to a network 12 through an interface box 14. The IWP 10projects an image onto a surface 30. This surface can be a wall, aconventional non-electronic whiteboard, or even a table top. The EpsonBrightLink 455Wi interactive whiteboard projector, for example, includesa driver for interactive pens 32, which can be used to draw on thesurface 30, highlight areas of the projected image, save annotations tothe projected image, and toggle between a pen mode and a mouse mode. Oneor more computers 16 can connect to the IWP 10 through network 12, ordirectly through a USB port on the projector 10 or interface box 14. InFIG. 1, computers 16 are illustrated as PCs, but in a corporate meetingsetting, for example, some or all of the computers 16 would be laptops,tablets such as iPad®, or hand-held devices.

FIG. 2 shows a simplified block diagram view with more detail ofprojector 10 and computer 16. The method steps of the present inventiondescribed hereinafter are preferably performed by one or more processorsin the projector 10 and/or computer 16 executing computer-executableinstructions, programs, software, firmware, that are stored or loadablein memory in projector 10 and/or computer 16 and/or in accessibleexternal memory. Computer 16 processors may include, for example, acentral processing unit (CPU) 161 and one or more graphical processingunits (GPU) 162. The internal memory may include, for example, RAM 163and ROM 164. I/O interface 165 enables communication with keyboard 54,mouse 56, external memory 166, and/or a touch screen device (not shown)for example. Client projector 10 may similarly include a CPU 101, RAM102, and ROM 103. I/O Interface and Connectors 106, which may beintegrated in projector 10 and/or interface box 14 (FIG. 1), allowconnection to and/or communication with external devices and services110. These may include, for example, connectors and interfaces for aneducational or business environment.

For example, in the Epson BrightLink 455Wi IWP there are two VGA portsthat can each connect to either a computer 16 or a component videosource. Also included are an S-Video port and a composite video jack.Each of these is paired with its own stereo audio input, with a minipluginput for each VGA port and one set of two RCA phono plugs shared by theS-Video and composite video ports. The connection panel also offers apass-through monitor connector, a microphone input, a miniplug stereoaudio output, two USB ports, an RS-232 port, and a LAN connection. OneUSB port is meant primarily for a document camera. The other is forconnection to a computer 16 that allows use of the interactive featureof projector 10. In addition, an Ethernet port allows projector 10 to bemanaged from a computer 16 over network 12. A wireless 802.11 port mayalso be provided for connection to a wireless network. The RS-232 portcan be used to run diagnostics as well as turn the projector on or offthough a third party controller. Data can also be sent to projector 10over a LAN or over the USB port.

In a preferred environment, projector 10 includes a Web Server 104,which may be any one of the many commercially available proprietary webserver software packages (e.g. Microsoft IIS, Oracle HTTP Server, etc.)or an open-source web server (e.g. Apache, Nginx, Lighttpd, etc). Thecomputer 16 preferably has a conventional Web Browser 166 such asInternet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, etc.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of an interactive whiteboard meeting. Aprojected screen 328 with instructions on how to download the meetingdata from IWP 10 will be discussed in detail later (with reference toFIG. 4). A classroom setting is shown in block 310. The short-throwprojection IWP 10 is mounted on a wall above a projection surface 30 sothat shadows cast by the teacher and student are minimized. A teacherand student can both interact with IWP 10 using pen(s) 32. Block 320shows a projection of a computer 16 desktop 322 with screen 324 from anapplication program such as Powerpoint, Word, Excel, etc. that might beused in a corporate meeting. Using a pen 32, the screen 324 can beannotated, for example, by adding formula 326 that can be saved to theIWP 10. All meeting data including projections of original pages, screendrawings, annotations, etc. are saved as whiteboard files in memory,e.g. RAM 102, of IWP 10 using, for example, SVG (Scalable VectorGraphics) or a portable network graphic (png) extension.

FIG. 4 illustrates the general steps of the present invention forsecurely distributing the meeting data, i.e. whiteboard files, tomeeting attendees. At the end of the meeting, the meeting administrator(i.e. meeting organizer, teacher, IT personnel, etc.) notifies the IWP10 that the meeting has concluded (step 402). This notification can beperformed by pressing a button on a control panel located on the IWP 10or interface box 14, through remote control, a web based control panel,command from a connected computer 16, or any suitable control commandmethod.

A processor, e.g. CPU 101, on IWP 10 generates a permanent ortimed-expiration password for the meeting data (step 404). Settings inthe IWP control what type of password (e.g. number of characters,alpha-numeric, caps, lower-case, etc.) is generated and how long is itvalid if it is a timed-expiration password. The settings, which can bestored in ROM 103 or RAM 102, for example, can be overridden on ameeting by meeting basis.

Next IWP 10 displays a projected screen 328 (FIG. 3) with instructionson how to download the meeting data from IWP 10 (step 406). The screenhas content with the following information, for example: “To access andsave the meeting content for this meeting, access the addresshttps://xxxxxx/ with your web browser. In the password box, enter thepassword yyyyyy;” where xxxxxx is the network address plus path of IWP10 and yyyyyy is the password generated for the meeting by the IWP 10.Alternately or additionally, projected screen 328 can include a QR Code(Quick Response Code) with the URL embedded. The QR code can be read bya smart phone, for example.

If the conference room has windows and the projection surface 30 isvisible to people outside the meeting, the meeting administrator cancommand the IWP 10 to play the password through a connected speakerinstead of displaying the password on the screen 328.

When meeting members access the given URL (Uniform Resource Locator),step 408, using their web browser 166, a meeting information page isdisplayed with information about the meeting, a list of the meeting datagenerated or uploaded during the meeting, controls to select all orindividual meeting data items, and controls to download the meeting datato the user's personal computer 16. An example of the meetinginformation page is shown in FIG. 5. The meeting members can thendownload all or selected whiteboard files (step 410). As shown in FIG.5, individual whiteboard files, saved with a portable network graphic(png) extension, for example, can be selected or deselected fordownloading to the meeting member's computer 16. The meeting data isencrypted when transferred across the network using the https protocol(Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) to the user's personal computer 16.

Once all meeting members have downloaded the meeting data (step 410),the meeting administrator can notify the IWP 10 through a button orother similar command that the meeting data can be destroyed. IWP 10then deletes all meeting data stored internally and invalidates themeeting password (step 412). The meeting data can no longer be accessedby anyone.

In some circumstances, meeting members may not have time at theconclusion of the meeting to download the meeting data or may not have alaptop in the conference room. In this instance, a time-expirationpassword is beneficial. If the password is a time-expiration password,the meeting data will be deleted after the specified time period haspassed after the end of the meeting.

The present invention offers several advantages over alternativemethods. In the present invention, the IWP 10 configuration requiresonly an IP address. If the enterprise (school/company) uses DHCP(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), IWP 10 will acquire and configurethe IP address automatically. IWP 10 does not require any additionalpermission such as access to email servers, file servers, or cloud basedservices.

Meeting users accessing the meeting data can use a standard web browser.No additional software installation is required. Also, the meeting datais not stored permanently in the IWP, thus adding a layer of securityand reducing the need for additional internal memory. Further, IWPdevelopment time is reduced since the present invention utilizesexisting tools and protocols.

Various embodiments can be implemented in digital electronic circuitry,or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in combinations of them.Apparatus can be implemented in a computer program product tangiblyembodied in a non-transitory machine-readable storage device forexecution by a programmable processor; and method steps can be performedby a programmable processor executing a program of instructions toperform functions by operating on input data and generating output.Embodiments can be implemented advantageously in one or more computerprograms that are executable on a programmable system including at leastone programmable processor coupled to receive data and instructionsfrom, and to transmit data and instructions to, a data storage system,at least one input device, and at least one output device. Each computerprogram can be implemented in a high-level procedural or object-orientedprogramming language, or in assembly or machine language if desired; andin any case, the language can be a compiled or interpreted language.Suitable processors include, by way of example, both general and specialpurpose microprocessors. Generally, a processor will receiveinstructions and data from a read-only memory and/or a random accessmemory. Generally, a computer will include one or more mass storagedevices for storing data files; such devices include magnetic disks,such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks;and optical disks. Storage devices suitable for tangibly embodyingcomputer program instructions and data include all forms of non-volatilememory, including by way of example semiconductor memory devices, suchas EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices; magnetic disks such asinternal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; andCD-ROM disks. Any of the foregoing can be supplemented by, orincorporated in, ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits).

While the invention has been described in conjunction with severalspecific embodiments, it is evident to those skilled in the art thatmany further alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparentin light of the foregoing description. For example, to avoid httpscertificate requirements in the projector's web server, a protocol suchas RFC 2945 may be implemented instead. RFC 2945 describes the SecureRemote Password Authentication and Key Exchange System, which does notrequire certificates.

Also, since browsers may not support RFC 2945 directly, the passwordentry screen in the web page delivered by the web server on theprojector may include a dynamic component such as ActiveX for InternetExplorer, a Java applet, a plugin, or other component to implement theclient protocol for RFC 2945.

Thus, the invention described herein is intended to embrace all suchalternatives, modifications, applications and variations as may fallwithin the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for distributing meeting data from aninteractive whiteboard projector to at least one computer of a meetingmember, comprising: providing said interactive whiteboard projector,said interactive whiteboard projector being an image projector configureto project an interactive image responsive to user inputs and lackingany dedicated interactive whiteboard, said image projector furtherhaving an internal processor, an internal memory and internal web serversoftware package; in the image projector, using said internal processorto save meeting data, including at least some of the interactive image'sresponses to user inputs, in said internal memory; generate a password;project an image with a URL of the projector and the password; and usesaid internal web server software package to transfer the meeting datafrom the image projector's internal memory to the at least one computer,wherein said at least one computer is remote from said image projectorand uses said URL to access said image projector through a network. 2.The method as in claim 1 further comprising: in the at least onecomputer, using a processor to access the URL of the projector using aweb browser and the password; and transfer the meeting data from theinteractive whiteboard projector.
 3. The method as in claim 2 furthercomprising: in the at least one computer, using the processor to selectindividual whiteboard files of meeting data for transferring from theinteractive whiteboard projector.
 4. The method as in claim 2 furthercomprising deleting the meeting data saved on the interactive whiteboardprojector once all meeting data has been transferred.
 5. The method asin claim 1 further comprising transferring encrypted meeting data fromthe interactive whiteboard projector to the at least one computer acrossa network using an https protocol.
 6. The method as in claim 1 whereinthe password is a time-expiration password.
 7. The method as in claim 6further comprising deleting the meeting data saved on the interactivewhiteboard projector once the time-expiration password has expired. 8.The method as in claim 1 further comprising displaying a Quick ResponseCode on the screen with the URL embedded.
 9. An interactive whiteboardprojector for distributing meeting data to at least one computer of ameeting member, comprising: an image projector configure to project aninteractive image responsive to user inputs and lacking a dedicatedinteractive whiteboard, said image projector further having an internalprocessor, an internal memory and internal web server software package;wherein said internal processor is configured to: save meeting data,including at least some of the interactive image's responses to userinputs, in said internal memory; generate a password; cause projectionof an image with a URL of the image projector and the password; and usesaid internal web server software package to transfer the meeting datafrom the image projector's internal memory to the at least one computer,wherein said at least one computer is remote from said image projectorand uses said URL to access said image projector through a network. 10.The interactive whiteboard projector as in claim 9 wherein the processordeletes the meeting data saved on the interactive whiteboard projectoronce all meeting data has been transferred to the at least one computer.11. The interactive whiteboard projector as in claim 9 wherein theprocessor transfers encrypted meeting data from the interactivewhiteboard projector to the at least one computer across a network usingan https protocol.
 12. The interactive whiteboard projector as in claim9 wherein the password is a time-expiration password.
 13. Theinteractive whiteboard projector as in claim 12 wherein the processordeletes the meeting data saved on the interactive whiteboard projectoronce the time-expiration password has expired.
 14. The interactivewhiteboard projector as in claim 9 wherein the processor causes displayof a Quick Response Code on the screen with the URL embedded.
 15. One ormore tangible, non-transitory computer-readable media embodyinginstructions executable by a data processor to perform a method fordistributing meeting data from an interactive whiteboard projector to atleast one computer of a meeting member, the method comprising: whereinsaid interactive whiteboard projector is an image projector configure toproject an interactive image responsive to user inputs and lacking adedicated interactive whiteboard, and wherein said image projectorhouses said data processor, an internal memory and internal web serversoftware package; in the interactive whiteboard projector, using saiddata processor to save meeting data, including at least some of theinteractive image's responses to user inputs, in said internal memory;generate a password; display an image with a URL of the image projectorand the password; and use said internal web server software package totransfer the meeting data from the image projector's internal memory tothe at least one computer, wherein said at least one computer is remotefrom said image projector and uses said URL to access said imageprojector through a network.
 16. The one or more tangible,non-transitory computer-readable media as in claim 15 furthercomprising: in the at least one computer, using a processor to accessthe URL of the projector using a web browser and the password; andtransfer the meeting data from the interactive whiteboard projector. 17.The one or more tangible, non-transitory computer-readable media as inclaim 16 further comprising: in the at least one computer, using theprocessor to select individual whiteboard files of meeting data fortransferring from the interactive whiteboard projector.
 18. The one ormore tangible, non-transitory computer-readable media as in claim 16wherein the method further comprises deleting the meeting data saved onthe interactive whiteboard projector once all meeting data has beentransferred by the at least one computer.
 19. The one or more tangible,non-transitory computer-readable media as in claim 15 wherein the methodfurther comprises transferring encrypted meeting data from theinteractive whiteboard projector to the at least one computer across anetwork using an https protocol.
 20. The one or more tangible,non-transitory computer-readable media as in claim 15 wherein thepassword is a time-expiration password.